Making Project Documentation a Positive Tool for Management

摘要

Since 1980, Sandia National Laboratory has been designing and constructing Particle Beam Fusion Accelerator II. One managerial challenge of a large project is the problem of handling information. The scope of the PBFA-II projet may be gauged by its cost: $19.4 million for the accelerator itself, $9.5 million for buildings and standard utilities, and $9.6 million for specialized utilities and support systems. The first need of the project at its outset, then, was communication, and this remains a chief function of the CPO. If the nature or magnitude of the risk changes in any one area, the entire project team must know. If a design is changed, persons working on interdependent efforts must know. Some of this communication takes place naturally and informally. But project procedures must guarantee that all important communication is received by all necessary people, that the communication creates accountability, and that management receives timely, accurate reports. To put it another way, important communication requires project documentation. Documentation is both a record of the project and a tool for management. (ERA citation 10:053028)